31st July, 2024
By Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt
One Justice Ejechi has appealed to Rivers Commissioner of Police, CP Olatunji Disu to intervene in the case of his alleged trial by ordeal (Juju trial) and illegal search of his house by vigilante operatives in Diobu area of Port Harcourt, the state capital.
Ejechi made the appeal after narrating how the Diobu vigilante operatives allegedly stormed his house on 21st of July, 2024 while he was sleeping.
He said he was later told that the vigilante operatives came to look for him when he woke up to fetch water.
According to him, he later discovered that his neighbour went to report to the vigilante group that he robbed him.
He said, “My neighbour said I came to his house to rob him. I said to rob you, how ? No knife no gun. Prince Amatari being the leader of the Diobu Vigilante now mandated a search in my house. They came to my house to search, at the end of the day they did not see anything.
“He still mandated me to go to one of their barracks to swear Juju/ The native doctor there said I am the one who is responsible. I said how? We came back.
“After two days, we traveled to my sister’s house. As I was there, they called me that Diobu vigilante came to search my house when I am not around, broke my door, destroy my door for no reason.
‘I have to go immediately to Mile 3 Police station and report the matter. The DPO called them, but since then, they have not heeded the call.
“They don’t want to come to the station. Now we book a meeting. We are supposed to meet with Nkpolu DPO. This morning by 11am they went to Octopus to call police to arrest me. Thank God for the IPO in charge, he was very fair. he said since the matter is already reported at Nkpolu, he said let them go there and settle the matter. So he let me to go.
“I am calling on the Commissioner of Police to come come for my rescue. Since this matter has being lingering after that oath they gave to me, which I don’t know, I have been feeling so many things. I cannot sleep”.
“My life is at stake. If anything happens to me, Prince Amatari should be held responsible.
Meanwhile a Port Harcourt based lawyer, Joel Victor in an interview with Journalists said trial by ordeal (Juju trial) is an offence which attracts 10 year imprisonment upon conviction.
” Trial by ordeal is a situation where some body is suspected of committing offence rather than taking the person (suspect) in this case to security agency that are charged with responsibility of investigating the crime and the person is now taken to one Juju priest or a place where he is being told to take an oath just to confirm if he did that thing or not.
“The law prohibits that. If you take a close look at relevant section of 207 to 213 of the criminal code the Law frowns at it and it carry a jail term of not less than 10 years if such person is being convicted.
“Somebody cannot be arrested on mere suspicion, there must be a reasonable suspicion. By also taking the suspect to search his house, the vigilante members have gone against letters and spirit of the law,” Victor noted.
